An Exquisite Pain. Does it exist? And if it does...do I want to experience it? Scandinavian Noir film and TV...love it or leave it? And anything else off the top of my...you know.

There  is a literary description found in novels and stories that indicates emotional pain can be exquisite. I am sure you've run across it in your reading since, if you are reading this, you would probably read anything from cereal boxes to the fine print on a rolled up toothpaste tube.

I don't know. Pain really hurts. Ever had your heart ripped from your chest by a person you thought would never do that to you in a million years? No scalpel needed. Just the right set of words or a lack of the right set of words and zing goes the strings of your heart (to steal a lyric) as they snap in a cacophony of discordant emotion. (Wow. That was almost Heminwayesque!)

Are you buying it? Now to all you Doms out there, this isn't what your Submissives are experiencing while roped upside down to your favorite rack as you flail away with your choice of...uh...flagellate (look it up in Websters). Enough about Shades of S&M. Can pain be exquisite?

Is it the "exquisite" that we don't grasp? We don't usually put those two words together. The words acute and intense are alternate definitions of exquisite and so instead of saying the pain was intense or acute one could use exquisite and confuse the crap out most of everyone. Here I am looking for Hemingway and I get Webster.
Ok. I get it. This whole exercise has been a lesson in exquisite pain for both of us. Sorry I mentioned it. It was just something off the...well you know.

Scandinavian Noir is cool!  

I Must admit I am addicted to Scandinavian Noir. God! I crave it. The Swedes really kicked it off but the Danes, Fins, Dutch, Swiss are among the front runners in that style of storytelling. The Germans and French can make it happen and even the Brits have their own take on the genre. Save but for a couple of series the Italians aren't in the game. Their stuff looks and sounds like poor imitations of our programming. There are a couple of major exceptions. One of which makes me want to fly to Sicily just for the food and sun.

Much of the material comes from novelists and writers who have perfectly captured the flawed main character with compelling, gritty, twisty or twisted plots that are difficult to suss out even for the most studied enthusiast.

My first experience with the genre was The Dragon Tattoo trilogy. I read the books so fast I forced myself to pause for a few weeks before I finished the final book. When the films became available on Nexflix I was absolutely enthralled. Yes. I had to read subtitles, but the films were so well done I can still enjoy seeing them more than once. Noomi Rapace was a revelation in the leading role. We got the Dragon Tattoo as three films. In Sweden they were presented as a six episode TV miniseries.

Next the phenomenon was the Swedish/Danish series, Bron (The Bridge) that began in 2010 and took the airwaves by storm worldwide making my addiction complete. The 4th and final series completed a couple of months ago and though it was sad to see the character go, the actress Sofia Helen whose portrayal of Saga Noren is as iconic as it is unforgettable, has many other screen projects in the can that her fans will be able to enjoy (recently The Same Sky Netflix).

I have seen two killer series from Spain and, though not Scandinavian noir, they show their mettle with unusual plots and strong but flawed characters. Yes...more subtitles, but I want to hear the emotion in the voice of the actors in the scene. I hear their voices as I read. It works. Trust me.

So, does the fact I haven't watched network TV for over six months now and have been streaming content from Netflix, Amazon Prime and MHZ Choice make me a Euoro small screen snob?  In the past those guys in Europe all wanted to emulate our shows. Charlies Angels, Baywatch, Dallas, Friends, All In The Family and other US TV fare was dubbed and made part of their prime Time. But I don't recall our police procedurals as big hits across the pond. Our stuff has become so formulaic that their is no grit in gritty crime drama. They've become more like soap operas with some malfeasance thrown in for good measure.

There are also some great Korean series available for streaming. Two recent series I enjoyed  are Black and Live. Live was a revelation regarding what young people go through in that country to secure a future, even if it is just to become police patrol officers.
It's good stuff.

There is some great low cost entertainment out there if you know where to look for it. Maybe cut the cable and you would be forced to shop around for your home entertainment value. You just spent $3,000 on that 70 inch 4K Ultra HD TV and another couple of grand on a surround system. You don't need cable to make it go!

Do you realize you missed 51 years worth of episodes of Tatort? Don't worry it's still on the air in Germany.
Expand your horizons and live a little. Scandinavian noir is here to stay. Now on to British noir and German noir and....